Port Dickson hardest hit by Storm Senyar in Negri Sembilan

SEREMBAN: Port Dickson was the district hardest hit in Negri Sembilan in the aftermath of tropical storm Senyar. A number of properties, especially those fronting the sea, suffered between minor-to-extensive damage due to the storm.

A state Fire and Rescue Service Department spokesman said its operations centre first received a distress call from a Petron platform at sea just after 1am.

Eight employees were stuck on the platform after part of the jetty collapsed.

Five managed to save themselves by getting into a tugboat belonging to the petroleum company while two others jumped into a rescue boat belonging to the company’s emergency response team. One remained stranded on the platform.

However, the victims could not come back to shore due to rough seas and strong winds.

A Civil Defence Force team was then sent out to rescue the eight. Around 2.15am, a joint operation with Petron was carried out and just before 4am, the last victim on the platform was rescued.

All eight victims were then moved into a tugboat and brought to shore just after 6am. The victims were all locals in their 20s to their 50s.

Checks showed that a tanker and a barge loaded with containers were also believed to have run aground due to the strong winds.

Damage was also reported at the Marine Department jetty as well as several other sea-fronting premises and hotels facing the ocean.

The more than a century-old Church of the Immaculate Conception suffered extensive damage with a large section of its roof blown away. Churchgoer Dominic Muthu said it may take months to repair the damage.

“The massive winds caused extensive damage to the building and equipment inside the church. A group of engineers from the Public Works Department arrived in the morning to assess the damage,” he said.

There were also several reports of uprooted trees in the district. Continuous heavy rain had also caused flooding in several areas in the state.

State Education director Khalidah Omar said 1,038 pupils from four schools had to switch to online Home-based Teaching and Learning (PdPR) due to this.

These were SK Jijan (420 pupils), SK Sega (132), SK Jimah (426) and SJKC Ladang Tanah Merah Site A (60). She said two schools also reported damage to their roof due to strong winds.

These were SMK Tinggi Port Dickson and SMK Dato Shamsudin Nain in Rantau.

“Engineers are now assessing the damage to the buildings,” she said, adding that the authorities were still compiling reports of damage from other schools.

She said two students sitting for the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia had to be moved to a flood relief centre at SK Jimah after their houses were flooded.

Another two were unable to make it to school due to floods.

“We will see if these students can be put up in hostels or if they can stay with relatives temporarily,” she added.